May 25, 2010 AT 12:48 pm

D-Pad Hero 2 – “Guitar hero” for the NES

D-Pad Hero 2, the sequel to last year’s homebrew music game for the NES, is now out and free to download! If you missed the original D-Pad Hero, the game is styled after Guitar Hero, with players tapping buttons as notes drop to the bottom of the screen, except it’s played with a traditional control pad instead of an instrument controller.

This follow-up promises 50 percent more tracks, three difficulty levels, new 3D-style visuals, song challenges, power-ups (e.g. POW blocks), multiple endings, and co-op/versus two-player modes. The new music includes Queen’s “I Want To Break Free”, Megadeth’s “Countdown to Extinction”, Led Zeppelin’s “The Ocean”, Elvis Presley’s “Burning Love”, and many others.

You can play the D-Pad Hero 2’s ROM in the emulator of your choice (or on an NES if you have the right equipment), but the game’s developers highly suggest using an actual controller instead of your keyboard to play the game…